Skin Cancer Facts

More than one million cases of basal cell or squamous cell cancers occur per year in the United States. 
Most of these forms of skin cancer are highly curable.

62,480 persons in 2008 are expected to be diagnosed with melanoma, a serious form of skin cancer.

In 2008, an estimated 11,200 deaths will occur from skin cancer.  8,200 from melanoma and 2,780 from other skin cancers.

The death rate for melanoma in whites younger than 50 as been decreasing rapidly.  In those older than 50, the rates have
been stable since 1998 in men and 1990 in women.

American Cancer Society - Atlanta.  Cancer Facts and Figures 2008.

The Three Most Common Types of Skin Cancer

1. Basal Cell Carcinoma
Comprises 80% of all non melanoma skin cancers. The actual incidence is difficult to determine due to exclusion from cancer registry statistics, but the trend is clearly toward an increasing number of cases.
           Australia has the highest rate
           The patients with this disease are increasingly likely to be young women
           Basal cell typically arises in body areas exposed to sun
           Head and neck are the most common locations (80%), then trunk (15%), then the arms and legs 
           Other areas of the body it has been reported in are the axilla, breasts, perianal area, genitalia, palms and soles
           Nodular is the classic form, a pearly papule papule or nodule with small blood vessels running through it, possibly
           with a rolled border, crusting or ulceration
           Superficial basal cell is typically a scaly, erythematous patch or plaque
           Morpheaform type appears as in indurated, whitish scar-like plaque with indistinct borders

Rubin AI, Chen EH, and Ratner D.  Basal-Cell Carcinoma.  The New England Journal of Medicine 2005;353:2262-2269.

2. Squamous Cell Carcinoma
            Comprises approximately 20% of non-melanoma skin cancers
            Exposure to ultraviolet radiation is the most common cause of this type of skin cancer
            Precursor is the actinic keratosis, scaly lesions a few mm in diameter
            In patients with actinic keratosis, there is a 6-10% lifetime risk of developing an invasive squamous cell carcinoma
            The lesion can be a sharply demarcated, erythematous, velvety or scaly plaque on a sun exposed area
            It can be a papule or plaque, firm, skin colored or pink, smoother or hyperkeratotic
            Ulceration may be present
            Some lesions can by itchy or painful
            Keratoacanthoma is a type of squamous cell carcinoma which grows rapidly into a nodule
            Sites of high risk for recurrences or metastasis are lip, ear, scalp, forehead, temple, eyelid, nose, mucous membranes,
            dorsal hands, penis, scrotum or anus
            Squamous cell carcinoma in injured or chronically diseased skin is associated with a higher risk for metastasis

Alam M, Ratner D, Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma. New England Journal of Medicine 2001; 344:975-983.

3. Malignant Melanoma
            The incidence of this third most common type of skin cancer is increasing steadily
            Incidence of melanoma among African Americans and Hispanics is much lower than among whites,
            but the rate is slowly increasing in these groups as well
            Early detection is necessary for a better prognosis with melanoma
            Persons with large number of moles/atypical moles, fair skin, blue/green eyes, blonde/red hair, family members of
            melanoma patients, patients with nonmelanoma skin cancers can be at high risk for melanoma.
            History of sunburns can also increase the risk of melanoma
            Signs of melanoma include new or existing moles with the following characteristics:
                        A. Asymmetry
                        B. Border irregularity
                        C. Color change, or a just a dark color, variation in the color of the mole throughout
                        D. Diameter change, a mole bigger than a pencil eraser, but melanomas can be smaller
                        E. Evolving moles or ones that are changing, different from the others, itches or bleeds

Alan C, et al.  Screening, early detection, and trends for melanoma:Current status (2000-2006 and future directions)

These skin cancer facts are meant to be just a brief summary of the most common types of skin cancer. 
For more complete information on skin cancer and their treatment please consult the following links:

The American Cancer Society www.cancer.org
The American Academy of Dermatology www.aad.org
Skin Cancer Foundation www.skincancer.org
The Dermatology and Skin Cancer Center www.kcdermcenter.com